Mogadishu, Somalia — Somali troops backed by U. S. Aircraft struck a reported bomb-making site in Saakow district overnight, leaving 18 al-Shabaab members dead and the facility destroyed, the Ministry of Defence announced early Friday.
The pre — dawn raid targeted a compound in Middle Juba that officials described as the militant group’s largest explosives workshop.
A ministry communiqué said the dead included several technicians who built roadside bombs used across south-central Somalia. No Somali soldiers were reported hurt.
Official statements indicate the operation is part of a wider “total war” campaign launched in 2022 to dislodge al-Shabaab from rural strongholds.
Saakow, 330 km southwest of the capital, has served for years as a logistics corridor where the group stores weapons and assembles improvised explosive devices. Independent observers have not verified the death toll or confirmed the scale of the damaged facility.
The United States Africa Command has yet to release details of its involvement, and no images of the strike site have been made public. Local reports say ground troops sealed off the area before dawn, allowing air assets to hit the compound. Residents heard several blasts but said they were ordered to stay indoors and have not accessed the scene.
The government stated the raid disrupts al — Shabaab’s supply chain ahead of planned offensives in neighboring districts. Similar claims followed recent operations in Bariire, Sabiid, and Awdheegle, where officials also reported seizing explosives stores. Further details are expected after military engineers finish assessing the site.
Source: sonna.
*Additional reporting by ImNews | Sources consulted: 5*
